Sports and Concussion

My boys are asking me to enroll them in junior football league. (My husband is a huge football fan, so I don't know why I didn't see coming.) I want to be the kind of mom who supports and encourages my children's interests, but honestly, I'm afraid of letting my kids play football. I've just heard too many things in the news about kids playing football getting concussions. Just last month, a 6th grader in the next town had to be carried off the field because he suffered a concussion during practice.

My friend who does let her son play football says you can get a concussion from playing any sport, like soccer or karate. I guess that's true, but I just keep hearing more stories about football. Do you let you let your boys play football? Do you worry about concussions?

 

The main reason my Jonathan doesn't play football is due to logistics. He would hate the 4 practices a week in August, it cuts into our family vacation, and games are on Sundays when the boys are in Hebrew School. If it weren't for all that, I would let him play. He is a kid that thrives on contact, and would probably do really well. Fortunately, he also loves baseball. That said, concussions can occur in any sport. My niece has received one or two playing HS basketball, and a boy got one in Marcus' U9 instructional league play last year. I have gotten one from falling off a horse and I mean one and I have been riding over 30 years. The key is to pay attention to behavior and stay on top of any injury.

BTW, at least around here, kids don't start tackle until 3rd grade. Up until then, it is flag football.

 

My middle son David played tackle football at 7. So, yes I would let them play. He had a blast!!! He would still play if football would allow him to play both hockey and football at the same time.

All my boys play hockey Yes, football is the sport with the most amount of concussions/head injuries. I do believe it's better to teach them young how to not hit with the head first to avoid a lot of the problems. The smaller they are when they learn good technique the better, since there is less weight to be thrown around. But...that's just my opinion. Don't get me wrong, I still cringed a couple of times when you would hear the helmets hitting, but that's football.

My son is so aggressive that I knew flag football would get him into trouble all the time. They do have a flag football league here. Do they have one in your area? That might be an option for you if you are really unsure about full contact.

BTW, I would recommend pre-concussion testing before you start a sport like football. They asked verbal questions to show a baseline. In the event of a possible concussion they ask similar questions to evaluate for a head injury. I didn't do a very good job of explaining. But our National Children's Hospital has a program for pre-concussion testing. I've looked into it for our boys. I just haven't had the time to do it.

 

Ours aren't old enough yet, but DH and I (who are huge fans of college and pro) have decided not to do football b/c of the risk of concussions. Yes you can get a concussion with basketball or soccer, but with football if your child is talented it seems almost inevitable. ardon:

 

No.

I know that injuries can occur in any sport, but I've read too many stories about brain damage found later. Maybe we're just in the news cycle where they all like those kinds of stories. The local news has also been doing stories on the amount of concussions and brain bleeds they are finding in the high school ranks.

To me, though, it's not just the head injuries. I went to a high school where the football team was treated like deities. They had special perks and privileges nobody else had. They got special things (like leaving campus for $70 per plate steak dinners paid for by the alumni association). I've seen that attitude in many places with regards to the football team and I just honestly want no part of it.

The other concern I have is the overall health of the players. They are encouraged so young to be putting on extra weight and weight lifting. Quite a bit of the NFL, to me, looks overweight. They want mass on the players so they can have more force tackling. I just don't agree with the whole "bulking up" school of thought.

So, to me, it's not just the risk of head injury. It's that, combined with the overall culture of football that I have seen. Timothy currently play soccer and basketball. I know things can happen there. Sarah rides horses. I just don't see the arrogance in those activities that I've seen in football.

Marissa

 

My DH and I agreed that DS would not play football until Jr High at least. Injuries are part of it (if you injure a growth plate on a kid who still has a lot of growing to do, that could cause serious problems), but not the main reason. I've observed enough peewee football (that's what the elementary leagues are called around here) practices and games to know that is not the type of environment I want for my kids. The "coaches" literally scream at the kids and use curse words. The parents are no better. They act as if their kids are headed to the pros and these little kid games will make or break their careers. Maybe it is better where you live, but around here it is taken way too seriously and not an encouraging environment for kids.

My kids did basketball and cheerleading through Upwards last year and I am going to look into flag football this year. It is only one night a week, much more affordable, teaches them the basics of the sport, doesn't have nearly the same potential for injury, and is a great, encouraging environment. It is run through local churches and they do talk about God and Christian character traits in sports. But, for us that was a huge bonus.

 

I would worry for the injury aspect, but I will wait until I am asked about it. But, it is true you can get an injury anywhere. On my niece's soccer team alone, they had 3 players out with concussions at 1 time. Heck, you can get a concussion riding a bike/scooter or playing on a swing set.

 

No, no football allowed here. It's not just the concussions, football just has more injuries in general. Sure, you can get injured in soccer, but you don't actively have someone racing at you with the singular purpose of knocking you over backward. To us it's not worth the risk. Fortunately, our oldest has no interest in football anyways, he's more of a karate guy, and he's loving his karate classes.

 

My sons don't play for a few reasons. The overall injury rate seems very high. My DD cheered for the local league and by about game 3 of each season there were usually a couple of kids on each team who were sitting games out for various injuries, most seemed to involve casts or crutches. I also don't like the time requirements, they start practicing in July and have practices 3-4 days/week plus games every Saturday through October. And my boys would probably get mangled. My BIL coaches the 2nd and 3rd grade team and is so proud of the fact that all but 3 of the boys are over 90 pounds. My 6th grader doesn't weigh 90 lbs and my 3rd grader is no where close.

 

Here in Pop Warner football, there is a weight limit. If you are over a certain poundage you are redshirted and cannot play certain positions or have to play up to the next league. Also, at 6-7, here "D" league is only a learning league. They don't actually play like a real game, they get 4 down each then switch. They also do not have 3-4 practices like the older leagues. They practice 2 times per week and play a game on the weekend. I assume that everywhere is different. But, I think the football families are amoungst the nicest people we have ever met. I only had a problem with one dad in the whole group, but you'll always meet up with one ultra competitive person in any sport.

I'd suggest talking to someone who plays in your area to see their feelings on the particular league. Typically people with give you the truth whether it be good, bad, or indifferent. You could even get a couple of different opinions from older and younger kids. The parents that have had their children come through the program could give you a wealth of information that a parent of a young child might not have. The more questions you ask, the easier it will be to make an informed decision.

Some leagues also have camps, where a child might be able to try it out for a week instead of a whole season. Some camps are tackle, some are not. A local football pro offered a free camp this summer that both my older boys took. They had so much fun. It wasn't full contact.

 

I agree with the bolded. It should be done in any contact sport.

Agree with all of the above!!

 

I have girls so football wasn't an issue but my girls both play sports and we have had and seen many injuries over the year. Where we live football isn't a big deal. I was amazed when we went to NC to visit family and they have these big night games with the field all lit up and everyone in town is there. Around here games are on Saturday morning and there are maybe 30 people there. Lacrosse is our most competitive and dangerous sport. There was a boy hit in the chest during a lacrosse game a few years back who died on the field. Almost every game we go to someone gets hurt. Kyle broke her ankle playing lacrosse in 8th grade and got a concussion last year during volleyball. Shawn got a black eye playing tennis. They both broke wrists when there were 11 during soccer games, they both broke wrists again within a half hour of each other skiing a couple years ago. Basically, they're going to get hurt in whatever they do so I would just let them try it out. Ironically, my nephew who played football through high school and was very good never hot hurt once. So if he can play 4 years of high school football without injury and my girls get hurt playing tennis and volleyball you just never know.

 

Concussions scare to me to death but I let my daughter do competitive gymnastics and that one is also high on the injury list so I have to say I would let him play. My daughter did have a pretty bad concussion 2.5 yrs ago. Scared me so much that night I decided I would never let her do gymnastics again...but that wasn't what happened. We have a great concussion clinic near us and I talked to them about my concerns and about what we should do. They can happen in any sport of course and I wish I could stick my kids in a bubble where I could never have anything bad ever happend to them. But my daughter has a passion for gymnastics (and I think she is pretty good) so let her go back to the sport. I will say Hockey gets the worst reputation as far as concussions (at least around here) and pretty severe ones too. I truly don't know what I would do until I was in your shoes, but I think I would probably let him play.

 

My 12 year old has played since he was 4 so yes I let my kids play. It does scare me but football is his passion and he is very good at it. This year he messed his knee up really bad and could not finish the season. His dream is to play for the U of Ga and then on to the NFL. I make sure we have new pads and helmet every year and I also have invested in several extra protective things. I also let him ride dirt bikes -

 

I would enroll my kids. Donevan fell at school on Tuesday off the climber and onto his head and ended up with a concussion, so they can get one without actually playing sports too.

 

Yes I would let my son play. Concussions can happen in any sport or almost any activity. I think getting the baseline screening is a great idea and should be recommended/encouraged for every kid playing any sport.

 

Andrea played Pop Warner football (yes that would be my oldest daughter-inside defensive tackle!), and didn't have a single injury. Every time she and the rest of the team were on the field they were in pads and helmets. The next year she decided to be a cheerleader, no pads, no helmets. She was injured more often as a cheerleader. Two of her teammates had to sit out the season due to concussions, she ended her 'career' as a cheerleader with a destroyed knee. She still can't walk right and has had multiple surgeries on it.


So a) yes I'd let my kids play football and did and b) all sports CAN be dangerous. I think it needs to be a choice you make as a family. Talk with other parents who have actually been in the league he wants to join. You can find out if it is a learning experience kind of league or a ubercompetitive league that often leads to more risk taking and injuries.

 

I feel the same way. It's a little hard to say what my DS or DD will be into, but right now they are loving soccer and baseball.

 

Absolutely! And actually football does not have any more injuries than other sports. Many times head balls in soccer cause concussions, baseball players get hit in the head when playing, gymnasts fall or fail to be caught correctly, basketball players hit the gym floor, skateboarders helmets don't cover the head correctly, etc etc etc. My son played from age 4 on. His only concussion came from recess, not football. The younger they start the better because then they learn the rules and safety policies before they get too big. Our football league has strict weight guidlines, no 100 lb kid will ever go up against a 60 lb kid. They divide teams by weights. With proper coaches and equipment, football is just as safe as any other activity kids do: trampolines, sports, riding in cars, etc.

 

I would allow Owen to play if he wanted, but football is not that common here. He does play hockey in the winter and lacrosse in the spring. In my opinion as a mother watching sports, box lacrosse is one of the roughest sports out there. I don't really like it, but he enjoys it & so far he has had no major injuries. If he ever did get a concussion, I think we would be very careful about how soon he would be allowed to play again. From what I understand, the biggest problems arise from kids who end up with repeat concussions or go back to playing before they have had sufficient time to heal.

 

Nope. We discourage football around here and my boys have been happy playing other sports.

 

I actually think statistically cheerleading has the highest rates of serious injury. You have kids doing gymnastics without appropriate equipment, coaches, and spotters.

 

Our oldest plays for a Div II team and our 8th grader has started the recruitment process so we obviously let them play. We are picky about coaches though. Most of the danger is in poor tackle technique and unfortunately most coaches are just parents that don't know what they're doing.
That being said, our only serious injuries have been from skiing, golf, and basketball.